Two separate cards in single monitor system

[daveoliver]

Hi

As my 6800GT Golden Sample is so poor for 2D work (discussed at http://www.nvnews.net/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=47503 - I'm 'Danger Mouse') I am considering installing a cheap PCI graphics card into my computer solely for 2D use (please see signature for current specs).

I only use one monitor. Is it possible to have the PCI card used by Windows, and set 3D games to use the 6800GT?

I suppose I would need some sort of cable switch to flick the monitor between the two cards as well?

Or is this simply not possible?

Many thanks.

 

[piroroadkill]

Why.

 

[rbV5]

IMO, if its so poor in 2D to consider adding an additional card something is wrong. Sure its possible, but if your monitor doesn't have dual inputs its more hassle than its worth.

I read your thread, and I'm not convinced its not just a driver issue. If it is not driver related, my advice would be to RMA the card, or sell it and get something else. Gainward normally has good IQ, that I recall, so it may very well be your board.

 

[daveoliver]

Originally posted by: piroroadkill
Why.

If you're referring to why I'm thinking of installing another card, I can't really explain it any better than I did in that initial post to which I linked. It's quite hard to describe to somebody if they don't experience it themselves, but it's a bit like using Windows in Safe Mode, when 2D isn't accelerated (but to a lesser degree). And I'm working on graphics a lot, so I find it rather annoying.

Originally posted by: rbV5
IMO, if its so poor in 2D to consider adding an additional card something is wrong. Sure its possible, but if your monitor doesn't have dual inputs its more hassle than its worth.

I read your thread, and I'm not convinced its not just a driver issue. If it is not driver related, my advice would be to RMA the card, or sell it and get something else. Gainward normally has good IQ, that I recall, so it may very well be your board.

I've tried several different driver versions (using Driver Cleaner in between) but they're all the same in this regard. Based on others' comments it just seems that nVidia cards, at least of this model, aren't good performers in 2D. It's not slow slow, but slow enough to be annoying. This may not be an issue for a lot of people who run at lower resolutions, and use their PCs mainly for gaming.

I bought the system from Scan ( http://www.scan.co.uk/ ) so I could see if they'll swap the card for an ATI one. If not, suppose I could just sell the card and buy a different like you say.

 

[kylebisme]

I can't say I have seen benchmarks for the geforce6 cards, but generally Nvidia has a bit faster 2d. I know for a fact that my 6800gt doen't come off as slow in 2d at all, and I run it at 1600x1200.

 

[rbV5]

Based on others' comments it just seems that nVidia cards, at least of this model, aren't good performers in 2D. It's not slow slow, but slow enough to be annoying. This may not be an issue for a lot of people who run at lower resolutions, and use their PCs mainly for gaming

I know that my eVGA 6800 had good 2D IQ and performance. I tested it against my AIW 9700pro directly (my 22" CRT has dual inputs) and I couldn't pick one over the other for 2D performance or quality, they were both very good even a higher resolutions. I use my PC's for a vartiety of purposes including A/V work.

I do alot of driver testing, mainly Catalyst drivers, and there have been times when my 2D performance suffered with certain builds with my ATI cards, I'm sure the same is true for Nvidia cards. These higher end consumer gaming cards are designed for 3D gaming, but 2D performance isn't compromised from my experience, not to the point of requiring seperate cards.

I suspect issues with your cards, drivers or otherwise.

 

[daveoliver]

Thanks for the replies. Just to clarify, there's nothing wrong with the actual visual quality of static images; it's just how fast the screen is being updated.

Are there any things you'd recommend I try, such as certain BIOS settings for instance?

I've been looking at the advanced timing settings in the nVidia control panel. Have experimented with timing standards of auto-detect, general timing formula, discrete monitor timing, coordinated video timing and fixed aspect ratio timing to no avail. So far I haven't tried changing the 'Mode & timing' settings as these looked rather complex and potentially dangerous (eg. '861B (1920 x 1080 @ 59.94) - P'). Would any of these be worth a go, or would I be in danger of blowing my monitor up?

 

[rbV5]

Playing with the advanced timing options aren't going to get you faster 2D performance. (yes, I understand the difference between 2D "Image Quality" and 2D "Performance")

2D performance should be roughly the same across the product line, rather than 2D IQ, which could vary from manufacterer to manufacturer due to differences in components. Thats why I suspect you have a driver or perhaps an issue with your particular board, I wish I could be more helpful, but to be honest when I've had that type of issue, it was a driver install away from a fix. Sounds like your card may have always exhibited poor 2D performance however.

 

[daveoliver]

Okay, thanks for posting.